Ok, so the shop is officially up and running. But who is this weirdo I hear some of you (maybe?) ask?
Personally, I love a bit of human connection. That's what makes the world go round really. Truly. Others would have you believe it's money but that's a whole different kettle of fish. Perhaps the world started spinning the other way when money took over, and that's where all our problems started, and it's up to us to reconnect and get it spinning the right way again.
Just a thought.
Ok, so shop up and running, who am I? I'll try and be concise as like any person, it's complicated.
I'm Bernadette. I love art, words and music and all that creative stuff, as well as a bit of everything else to be honest. History is essential. Everyone should learn a bit about historic events on this planet, I believe it would shape our future for the better. I have studied academically and have a BA and MA in English and Creative Writing. I've also been very busy studying 'on the job'. Life has a wealth of things to teach us, if we can pay attention.
Lessons often come in the form of challenging experiences, and I've had a few. My dad passed away 10 years ago, which knocked me for six, it took a long time to come back from that one. My mum passed a year ago and my little one was born one month after. Mum had dementia and her decline paralleled my little one growing. It's been a lot. Losing Dad shaped me for sure, but the last couple of years chiselled me away to the point there wasn't much left. I am regrowing though. I've got a beautiful family and I am learning to live with grief.
I'm somewhere in that uncomfortable self diagnosed neurodivergent bracket (I feel like a fraud even saying it). I've been claiming to have ADHD since being very small, though I didn't know exactly what that was at the time. I've tried to get diagnosed but never make it very far through the process as I get distracted by other things in my life. My mental health has been up and down and as such I take great interest in that and how to manage it. So, I learn what I can and have also had some rudimentary training as a mental health first aider in my workplace, which was a real eye opener. If you get the chance to do anything like that, do it. It's been massively helpful to me personally, let alone anyone else I talk to.
With all of this info, you may start to connect the dots on why I created Birdy & Bright. I set everything up just before I went back to work part time (and my little one to nursery). I wanted to sell fun arty mantra style prints with a focus on positivity. That said I couldn't help but be a bit tongue and cheek. I'm not a 'live, love, laugh' kind of person, so some of my designs poke a little fun too. In setting things up I discovered mugs, bags and tshirts were also pretty cool so I added them to the mix. And I got to thinking it would be nice to do something more with the site, something helpful. So I'm setting up a page for mental health resources, and a blog offering helpful advice. A lot of my social media encourages chat around the rather trixy topic. I'd love to build a community were people are comfortable talking, and the group are supportive. When there are enough people I might be cool to set up a forum. These communities can make such a difference to people, and I would just love that.
So yes, I guess that's me for now! This whole project is going to be a bit of a slow burner, I think. I only have a little time each week, and as much as various people are getting in touch trying to push automations, faceless branding, gaining 100k followers in a week etc, and the future is video content rather than words and pictures, I just want to do this my way. I'm in no rush for growth. I want it to grow naturally, organically, and everyone to be here because they truly want to be.
So, if you have read this far thank you! And if you like my vibe maybe you can follow some of my social media (links are in the footer of my site), share posts, and perhaps sign up to the newsletter. It gets you 10% your next purchase, and you'll get a loosely biweekly or update on recent posts/news/special offers etc too. I definitely won't spam you. I don't have the time!
